Cases

The ACLU of Southern California undertakes litigation when doing so is the most effective way to advance a civil liberties concern. We file lawsuits that will have an impact on people’s rights by setting a legal precedent or affecting the policies and actions of public officials. We both provide direct legal representation to people and file amicus (friend-of-the-court) briefs addressing civil liberties issues in cases initiated by others. All of the ACLU’s legal work is on a pro bono basis; we never charge for our legal services.

The ACLU Foundation of Southern California; ACLU Foundation of San Diego and Imperial Counties; and law firm Nixon Peabody LLP joined a state lawsuit on behalf of Christynne Wood, a transgender woman denied use of women’s bathrooms and locker rooms at a Crunch Fitness gym in El Cajon.

Two Bay Area fathers who have been detained for over six months at the Contra Costa West County Detention Facility in Richmond, California sued the federal government today in a class action lawsuit challenging their unlawful and prolonged detention.

The ACLU Foundation of Southern California, with the National Day Laborer Organizing Network (NDLON) and the law firm of Sidley Austin LLP, filed a lawsuit in federal court on behalf of nine people with Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and five United States citizen children of TPS holders agains

On March 17, 2017, Bakersfield Police Department officers Jeffries and Bishop stopped the car in which Robert Mitchell was a passenger for the purported purpose of enforcing state vehicle code violations.

In this case, the ACLU is representing a young woman in Texas who is currently being prevented from accessing abortion care because the Trump administration has adopted a new policy that directly prevents unaccompanied immigrant minors from obtaining abortions.